Manufacturers, retailers, wholesalers, and distributors typically maintain an inventory of various items that may be ordered and shipped to clients or customers. This inventory may be maintained and processed at a materials handling facility or facilities such as distribution centers, cross-docking facilities, and order fulfillment facilities (which may be collectively referred to as distribution centers). Fulfillment networks may include one or more distribution centers and may be operated by a distributor, manufacturer, retailer, or wholesalers, for example. Generally, fulfillment networks may receive orders for items stored in inventory, retrieve the ordered items, and ship the items to the ordering customer's destination.
With the recent and staggering growth of electronic based commerce, virtual storefronts are increasing their offerings to compete in greater numbers with “brick and mortar” stores. In order to compete with the advantage of traditional stores, namely the near instant receipt of purchased items, virtual storefronts are developing innovative systems to approximate the same experience. For example, subscriber-based shipping programs are one method that virtual storefronts have developed to increase consumer confidence in the ability of virtual storefronts to quickly and easily place purchase items into the hands of consumers. As virtual storefronts grow in scale, the fulfillment networks that supply the items offered by virtual storefronts are increasingly controlled by distinct entities that may provide their own various methods for delivering purchased items to customers.
While the invention is described herein by way of example for several embodiments and illustrative drawings, those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention is not limited to the embodiments or drawings described. It should be understood, that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit the invention to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present invention. The headings used herein are for organizational purposes only and are not meant to be used to limit the scope of the description. As used throughout this application, the word “may” is used in a permissive sense (i.e., meaning having the potential to), rather than the mandatory sense (i.e., meaning must). Similarly, the words “include”, “including”, and “includes” mean including, but not limited to.